www.BXTimes.com BRONX WEEKLY March 22, 2020 2
Study on NYCFC Stadium design recommendations
Realtor claims buyer applied deception to acquire PPN site
BY JASON COHEN
The realty offi ce that sold the highly
controversial site of a proposed methadone
clinic in Pelham Parkway North
claims the purchaser applied deception
to acquire a Williamsbridge Road property.
On Thursday, March 12, Sonny Vataj,
principle of Exit Realty, held a press conference
announcing the release of public
documents that detailed the buyer’s controversial
purchase of 2500 Williamsbridge
Road.
In November 2019, Councilman Mark
Gjonaj, Assemblywoman Nathalia Fernandez
and Community Board 11 held
a raucous town hall where nearly 1,000
people expressed displeasure with a
methadone clinic coming to the community,
specifi cally because of its close proximity
to P.S. 89.
However, on Monday, February 17,
Carnegie Hill Institute purchased the
brick one-story property for $925,000
from Florence Klapper, a Manhattan resident,
$75,000 less than the original asking
price, under an alias.
“Why were we lied to?” Vataj exclaimed.
“Why was the community deceived?”
Vataj urged everyone to contact the
attorney general and OASAS (Offi ce of
Addiction Services and Support) to block
Carnegie Hill Institute’s licensce application.
Vataj, who has operated the realty on
Allerton Avenue for 20 years, hoped to
bring transparency to the community.
With residents, activists and business
owners on hand, he explained how the
sale transpired.
On May 1, 2019 Exit Realty listed 2500
Williamsbridge Road for sale with a $1
million asking price. There were multiple
offers, including Carnegie Hill. A week
later CHI went to Community Board 11 to
announce its intent to use the property as
a methadone clinic and was met with opposition.
The seller rejected the offer.
It was then relisted on the market October
18, 2019 and an offer was accepted
for $925,000. WBRD LLC was the listed
buyer, but six months later the property
was fl ipped to CHI, according to an
ACRYS fi ling.
While residents commended Vataj for
releasing the documents, their outrage
was not assuaged. Community Board 11
chairman Al D’Angelo feels the community
has been betrayed. He’s convinced
fraud took place and hopes the NYS attorney
general looks into the matter.
“Obviously this is something I would
consider illegal,” he said. “CHI should
never be allowed in this community
again.”
Allerton Homeowners and Tenants
Association President Sal Castorino is furious
with Carnegie Hill’s deception, but
fully supports Vataj. Sal, a lifelong resident
of the area, attended P.S. 89, which is
across the street from the planned clinic.
“We don’t like the idea that these
people tried to sneak into our community
with a drug place a few blocks from
a school and church,” he said. “We don’t
need that.”
Community activist Irene Estrada,
who organized two rallies against the
clinic on March 5 and March 10, praised
Vataj for holding the press conference,
but was incensed by CHI’s trickery.
She called the sales contract a fraud
and asked where are the elected offi cials
and how did they not know about this.
“People don’t trust politicians anymore,
she exclaimed. “We’re tired of being
deceived. Our concern is that regardless
of how this happened everyone needs
to stand up and fi ght with me.”
Exit Realty owner Sonny Vataj speaks at a press conference on March 12 where he released the documents
about the sale of 2500 Williamsbridge Road. Schneps Media Jason Cohen
BY JASON COHEN
With NYCFC reportedly nearing
an agreement for the development
of a stadium in the south
Bronx, a recent report outlined
how it would positively impact
the community surrounding the
proposed stadium site.
According to the New York
Times, “The team’s owners, in
conjunction with a group of local
developers, are nearing an
agreement with New York City
that would allow the team to
construct a privately fi nanced,
25,000-seat stadium in the south
Bronx as part of a development
project costing more than $1 billion.”
On Thursday, March 5, the
Urban Land Institute New York
and Community Board 4 Technical
Assistance Panel released:
Neighborhood-Focused Strategies
for Future Growth, which
includes recommendations for
stadium design and community
programming, increasing use
of public and alternative transit
options and improving neighborhood
walkability and connectivity
to open space and the waterfront.
“As the city continues to the
move forward with discussions
of a NYCFC stadium the community
board remains intent on
ensuring that the community at
large plays an active role in the
determination of how city-owned
property is utilized,” said Paul
Philips, CB 4 district manager.
The panel of real estate professionals
with development, design,
fi nance and legal expertise,
studied the site and interviewed
a variety of community stakeholders.
Its recommendations
were broken into three categories:
Design and Programming;
Connectivity and Planning for a
Community-Focused Neighborhood.
More than Just a Stadium
–
Design and Programming
The stadium could serve as
a community hub, a venue for
health and wellness programs,
neighborhood sports activity and
much more.
Connectivity
Despite access to numerous
transportation options within
the area, congestion is a huge
problem in the area. It would be
crucial to take steps to encourage
NYCFC fans to use public and alternative
transportation options
– including rail, bus, walking
and biking.
Community-Focused Neighborhood
Many people in the area continue
to drive due to the abundance
of underutilized parking
lots and structures and many
shuttered businesses, especially
outside of Yankees game days.
However, with careful planning
and targeted zoning changes,
River Avenue could become a
popular, mixed-use corridor.
In September 2019, a survey
conducted by the 161st Street
BID revealed that 65 percent of
the neighborhood supported a
stadium if it included a female
team, community programing,
had a dome for year-round
use and made the community a
shareholding partner.
Cary Goodman, the director
of the BID told the Bronx Times
that the people who did the study
do not represent the community.
He feels their assertion that
people in the poorest congressional
district want more access to
the waterfront is wrong.
Goodman said besides people
selling food in the stadium, this
wouldn’t bring jobs to the community.
He strongly disagrees
with the studies assertion that
people in the area don’t have access
to the waterfront. According
to Goodman, in his 11 years
as director he has never heard
anyone say they can’t get to the
Harlem River. People are more
concerned about better schools
and jobs.
“I don’t see anything that
syncs up with the dynamic that
we discovered in our survey,”
Goodman said.
An aerial view of where the proposed stadium would go. Photo Courtesy ULI
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